The Best One-Word Line in Ghostbusters

Because our current culture is so very insistent that sex appeal is a thing that is…objectively rate-able. It’s not that you in particular find someone attractive. It’s that they areattractive. So everybody finds them attractive! Because they just ARE! They’re five feet, 11 inches tall, they wear a size ten shoe, and their attractiveness rating is 9.65!

This is, of course, bullshit.

But it’s reinforced so loudly and constantly that it can be hard to remember that it’s bullshit.

And I don’t think that the line is intended to mean that Abby doesn’t find Kevin attractive because she’s gay. Or because she’s gay and specifically into Erin and thus jealous about Kevin’s attractiveness. (I didn’t feel like canon made any strong statement about Abby’s sexuality. Your mileage, obviously, may vary. And my take on canon does not remotely preclude wanting to see lottttts of slash written about all these ladies. Slash ’em UP, please. And then send me a link.)

Abby just totally does not find Kevin hot.

She’s not making nasty comments to Kevin. She’s not, really, trying to shame Erin for her taste–it’s not a diatribe, just a quick, almost involuntary yelp of baffled astonishment.

And it made me very happy. Because attractiveness is NOT objective and NOT a universal standard. Because it is incredibly personal. Because–all you folks who say “nobody wants to see that!” about fat people who show some skin?

Some people deeply, desperately, with every tingle in their loins, DO want to see that.